Fracking hell: UK government set to green light risky gas drilling?

A controversial gas extraction method caused two earthquakes in the UK last year, a government panel of experts reported. Yet, despite the environmental dangers fracking may cause, its resumption has been recommended, albeit under strict regulation.

The report by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC)
backs up an inquiry by energy company Cuadrilla late last year,
after which the company admitted culpability for the small
earthquakes which measured 2.3 and 1.5 on the "local
magnitude" system under which three is classed as
"moderate".

Gas drilling by Cuadrilla at the Preese Hall well in north-west
England was suspended in 2011 after two earthquakes in Lancashire
were felt at the surface.

Hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" involves pumping
water, sand and chemicals into shale rock at very high pressures
in order to release the reserves of natural gas which are stored
within.

Britain holds significant receivers of shale gas which is
regarded as a means of providing relatively cheap energy supplies
and a lucrative alternative to importing fossil fuels.

A government decision on whether to allow Cuadrilla to continue
fracking is due in six weeks' time, with ministers expected to
give it the go-ahead.

But green groups and local anti-fracking groups have denounced
the report and warn against possible side effects, including the
contamination of groundwater supplies, air pollution and an
increased risk of earthquakes.

Elsie Walker, a member of the Frack Off group that has organised
protests at Cuadrilla rigs and rallies in London, said: "This
report is a seriously dangerous distraction. People need to
understand that the wave of unconventional gas development that
is threatening the British Isles will bring with it far greater
consequences than a number of small earthquakes."

"Even within the narrow context of earthquakes, this report
misses all the real issues such as sub-surface damage to wells
causing them to leak, the much larger earthquakes seen in the US
as a result of widespread shale gas development and the potential
effects on sensitive infrastructure like nuclear power stations
and railway lines."

Such criticism of the process is not confined to the UK. In the
US, shale gas has scaled up rapidly to account for around a
quarter of the country's natural gas extraction, but so has the
opposition to fracking following the release of the 2010
documentary "Gasland". This showed residents of a small town in
Colorado setting alight tap water they claimed was soured by
nearby oil industry activity. Then in 2012 a whistleblower
claimed fracking could poison New York's drinking water. Such
concerns have seen France and Bulgaria ban fracking.

However, the DECC report, written by Peter Styles, professor at
Keele University, Dr Brian Baptie of the British Geological
Survey, and Dr Christopher Green, an independent fracking expert
from GFrac Technologies, concludes that the risk of damage caused
by earthquakes from franking was minimal.

However, the panel recommends the following measures to mitigate
the risk of any damaging seismic activity regarding Cuadrilla's
Preese Hall operation and other projects in the Bowland Shale
area of Lancashire:

- That the hydraulic fracturing procedure should include a
smaller pre-injection and monitoring stage.

- That an effective monitoring system to provide near real-time
locations and magnitudes of any seismic events should be part of
any future hydraulic fracturing operations.

- That future fracking operations for shale gas should be subject
to a “traffic light” control regime. A red light at
activity levels of magnitude of 0.5 or above means fracking
should be stopped and remedial action taken

The DECC’s chief scientific advisor, David MacKay, said: “If
shale gas is to be part of the UK’s energy mix, we need to have a
good understanding of its potential environmental impacts and
what can be done to mitigate those impacts. This comprehensive
independent expert review of Cuadrilla’s evidence suggests a set
of robust measures to make sure future seismic risks are
minimised – not just at this location but at any other potential
sites across the UK.”

However, this is unlikely to satisfy those critics who view
fracking as an inherently unsafe means of energy extraction. The
report's authors themselves concede that further fracking-induced
earthquakes are possible.

Even though these would be small, no higher than around magnitude
three and unlikely to cause structural damage, the experts added:
"Such an event would be strongly felt by people within a few
kilometres from the epicentre and could cause some alarm."

Andy Atkins, the executive director of Friends of the Earth
believes the wider debate on where and how we source our energy
needs to be re-visited: "We don't need earth tremor-causing
fracking to meet our power needs – we need a seismic shift in
energy policy. There should be a full scientific assessment of
all the impacts of fracking – a short consultation on one of the
problems is completely inadequate. We should be developing the
huge potential of clean British energy from the sun, wind and
waves, not more dirty and dangerous fossil fuels."

In six weeks’ time the government is due to give its decision on
whether to allow Cuadrilla to continue its fracking activity. It
is expected that the company will get the green light.